Improvement in machines for polishing the eyes of needles



PATENTED DEC. 17, 1861.

c. KAISER. MACHINE FOR POLISHING THE EYES OF NEEDLES,

E-I-E UNITED STATES PATENT OrFIcE.

CHARLES KAISER, ornnw YORK, N. Y.

1 IMPROVEMENT lN MACHINES FOR POLISHING THE EYES OF NEEDLES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 33,947, dated December1? l861.

the principles of my invention, and Fig. 2 represents an. end elevationof the same.

It has been customary heretofore to polish the eyes of sewing-machineneedles by hand by moving them to and fro along a thread passed throughtheir-eyes and smeared with oiland powdered emery. This hand-polishingrequires the expenditure of a great amount of labor and of much care onthe part of the operator to polish all sides of the eye equally.

Attempts have been made to polish the eyes of needles by machinery byswinging the needles upon polishing-wires; but such machinery isdefective and cannot be used with advantage for sewingmachine'needlesbecause it tends to polish only that side of each needle-eye which isfarthest from the long end of the needle, which, in sewing-machinneedles, is the shank, and as the polishing was elfected only by turningthe polishing-wire in the needle-eyes it polished but slowly.

The object of my invention is to do the work of polishing the eyes ofneedles by power by the substitution in place of hand labor of a machinewhose operation isto cause needles to move upon polishing-wires in amanner similar to that in which needles are moved in hand polishing.

To this end the first part of my invention consists in the combinationof a polishingwire upon which the needles are strung, with a frameacross which the wire is stretched, and with mechanism to cause theneedles to move longitudinally upon the Wire.

The object of the second part of my invention. is to equalize thepolishing of the sides of the needle-eyes, so that the side of the eyewhich is farther from the adjacent end of the needle shall be properlypolished. To this ,be borne upon the polishing-wire at all.

' end the second part of my invention consists in combiningthe firstpart thereof with suitable means that cause the needles to move upon thepolishing-wire with the ends that are nearer the eyes downward.

Both parts of my invention are embodied in the needle-eye polisherrepresented in the accompanying drawings.

In this machine there are two framesAand A, each of which is secured bya screw 1) at its center to a shaft 0. The shaft is fitted with a pulleyD, to which a belt is applied, so as to cause the shaft with its-framesto revolve.

As this machine is constructed to polish a large number of needle-eyessimultaneously, each of its frames is fitted with four polishing-wires(1.. These wires are made of copper and are annealed. They are securedat one end to the frame and at the other to a key e, mounted upon theframe, by turning which key the wire may be drawn tight across theframe. The needles to be polished are strung upon the polishing tires,and as the frames revolve with the shaft each end of each polishing-wireis alternately raised above the other end thereof, so, that the needlesstrung upon the wires are free to slide longitudinally by gravityalternately from one end to the other of each wire. If the needles werepermitted to hang freely upon the Wires, it is clear that they wouldalways hang with their longer ends downward, and thus the side of theeye which was nearer the shorter end of each needle would be borne uponthe wire and polished, while the side of the needle-eye nearer thelonger end of the needle would 11ft n order to cause this latter side ofthe needleeye to be borne upon the polishing-wire, the outerpolishing-wires of each frame are set nearer the outer bars f of theframes than the length of the needles. Intermediate wires h are alsosecured to the frame at a less distance from the polishin g-wiresthanthelengths 2 seam? plane the needles swing round onthe polishin g-wiresand retake theirfirst positions with their longer ends downward.

ing-wires; but by causing the polishing-wires to incline alternately inopposite directions the polishing is greatly hastened, as the use diesnot only turn round on the wires, but

also slide to and fro thereon. In order to prevent the needles fromstriking against the the frames about two feet square and to ap- -ply as'many rows of polishing and intermedi- I ate Wires as can beput on sucha frame, according to the lengths of the needles,with'out the adjacentrowsof needles interfering with each other. The needles are strung uponeach polishing-wire, the polishing-wires are smeared'with fine emery andoil, and the ma.- .chine is caused to revolve by throwing its belt intogear. At first, as the needle-eyes are comparatively rough, they merelyturn upon the polishing-wires without sliding; but as the roughness ispolished off the needles begin to slide to and fro on the wires; Whenthe frame "has turned. a number of hours in one direction, I reverse therevolution of the shaft by crossing the belt, so as to cause the framesto turn in the reverse direction to the first,whereby the polishing ofall sides ,of the eyes is equalized. A good speed for the shaft withframes two feet square is twenty-four revdlu tions per minute, and atthis speed it requires about thirty hours to polish afraine full of Ifthe polishing-wires' were arranged parallel to the center shaft and thelatter were horizontal, the needles would merely swing round on thepolish i needles. As, however,'sucha frame will contain about fivethousand mediumsized needles at a time and as the power required to moveit is exceedinglysmall, the time is-a matter of secondary importance.The inclination at which the wires are set causes the eyes to the eve isfunnel-shaped from each side of the needle. This inclination of thewires maybe varied, if required, by turning the frames on the screws b,which secure them to the shaft.

The construction and mode of imparting motion to the frames of themachine may be varied, as circumstances render expedient or to meet thepeculiar views of needle manufacturers.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secureby LettersPat'ent-,-is-- 1. Arranging the wires upon which the needles are strungupon a frame to which may be imparted either a revolving orreciprocating motion in such manner that the needles will be forced bygravitation .to. slide longitudinally upon said wires, substantially asdescribed. I v

2. In combination with the foregoing, by the interposition of suitablemechanical obstructions arresting the needles in their attemptedrevolution around the wire and retaining them for a portion of the timewith their long ends upward, in orderthat during such period of timethat side of the eye of the needle which is nearest the long end may, bycoming in contact with the wire and having the weight of the needlesuperimposed upon it, be polished equally with the other side of theeye, substantially as described.

" In testimony whereof I havehereuutosubscribed my name.

CHARLES KAISER.

Witnesses R. W. MGOLELLAN, W. L. BENNE'ND.

polish as if they were countersunk, so that

